Behavioral and biochemical changes after bilateral electrolytic lesions of the red nucleus of rat.

Bilateral electrolytic lesions of the red nucleus (RN) of rat decreased apomorphine-induced stereotypy, increased haloperidol-induced catalepsy, reversed apomorphine-induced hypothermy, decreased spiroperidol-induced hypomotility, and BHT-920-induced yawning and penile erection episodes. Moreover, apomorphine antagonized haloperidol-induced catalepsy in the RN-lesioned group. The lesioned animals revealed depleted levels of dopamine and its metabolites in brain areas as well as serotonin and its metabolite. The brain areas analyzed were pyriform cortex, substantia nigra, striatum, enthorinal cortex, and cerebellum. Based on these results, it is very likely that the RN has a complex role in the behavior of rats as a consequence of dopaminergic-serotoninergic changes in the central nervous system.